Baking Partners Challenge # 4: Shaped Dinner Rolls

Uh-oh, I'm sooo late at posting this for Baking Partners. My apologies; work and personal life are hectic as they can ever be with the holidays coming. Plus, my internet is doing crazy stuff lately I couldn't post blogs for a few days. 

Anyway, here's what I have for our shaped dinner rolls challenge. I used the Lions Roll recipe but substituted with whole grains flour instead of white flour. I'm such a fan of whole wheat bread so I thought this challenge was a great opportunity to learn to work on this ingredient. It was really a challenge for me, double up, since I don't do bread that much and I worked on wheat for the first time.  

Here's the recipe which I halved since we still have lots of bread at home when I made these. Honestly, this is such a great recipe, I'm keeping it for life :) The bread is soft even if it already cooled. 

Lion House Rolls 

Ingredients: 

. 2 cups warm water (110-115 degrees) 

. 2/3 cup nonfat dry milk (instant) 

. 2 Tb. dry yeast 

. 1/4 cup sugar 

. 2 tsp. salt 

. 1/3 cup shortening (butter or margarine) 

. 1 egg 

. 5-5 1/2 cups flour, all purpose (bread flour can be used if you have it on hand) 

Method: 

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, combine the water and the milk powder and stir so the 

milk dissolves. Add the yeast to tthis mixture then the sugar, salt, shortening, egg and 2 cups of 

the flour. Mix on low speed of mixer until ingredients are wet, then turn to medium speed and 

mix for 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and add 2 more cups of flour then mix on low speed until the 

ingredients are wet, then turn mixer on medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. The dough will 

be getting stiff and you may need to remove the bowl from the mixer and mix in the remaining 

flour by hand. Add approximately 1/2 cup of flour and mix again. (This can be done by hand or 

mixer). The dough should be soft, not overly sticky, and not stiff. (It is not necessary to use the 

entire amount of flour). Scrape the dough off the sides of the bowl and pour approximately on 

tablespoon of vegetable oil all around the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough over in the bowl so 

it is covered with the oil. (This helps prevent the dough from drying out.) Cover with plastic and 

allow to rise in a warm place until double in size. Sprinkle a cutting board or counter with flour 

and put the dough on the flour. It is now ready to roll out and cut into desired shape and size of 

rolls. Place on greased (or parchment lined) baking pans. Let rise in a warm place until the rolls 

are double in size (approx. 1-1 1/2 hours). Bake in a 375-degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until 

they are browned to your satisfaction. Brush with melted butter while hout. Yields 2 to 2 1/2 

dozen rolls. 

mixed ingredients ready for the plastic wrap

left the dough overnight to rise

here's what greeted me the next morning

I also checked Youtube to see some videos on how to do:

1) Croissant

added choco-hazelnut spread since my kids love bread with chocolate

2) Clover with raisins 

3) Kaiser buns

left it for an hour to let it double up in size again. I brushed with milk before before putting the trays in the oven. 

Here's the finish product. At first it felt daunting because they didn't look as soft as I expected. I was thinking maybe because I used pure wheat / bran flour. Maybe I should've mixed it with white flour. What do you think? 

Nevertheless, when I made my first bite, it was as soft as I wanted it. Love wheat bread with raisins :)

I will continue practicing bread-making with wheat until I can make them soft and fluffy.